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Worrals Goes Afoot/plot
Chapter 1: An Argument and an Assignment An important road is being built through the Sinai peninsula to link Sudan with Southern Transjordania. However some unknown hostile element has been disrupting the work, stirring up trouble among the native workmen and providing the recalcitrant ones with weapons to wreak havoc. Air Commodore Raymond and Cedric Collington (otherwise known as Colin Pasha) of the Foreign Office ask Worrals and Frecks to investigate. The "argument" part of the chapter heading refers to Worrals' characteristic annoyance with Raymond and Collington about their "supposed masculine superiority". Chapter 2: Operation Distaff Worrals and Frecks arrive in Alexandria and meet their secret service contact Melinos. The only lead Collington had was that the gun-runners appeared well organised. The criminals with the best organisation in the Middle East were the hashish racket. Worrals tells Melinos that she planned to sell some hashish. This would attract the attention of the dope syndicates and possibly lead to the gun-runners. Melinos agrees to arrange for a large quantity of charas (a drug like hashish) for her scheme. Chapter 3: Worrals Baits Her Trap Melinos introduces Worrals and Frecks to Maki and his son Ali, two of his trusted men who would play the part of charas smugglers who worked for Worrals. Melinos then takes Worrals and Frecks to the kasbah when they call on a suspected hashish retailer, Nicopoulos and offer to sell him the charas. Chapter 4: The Bait is Taken The next morning, one Julius Markoff calls on Worrals and Frecks. He represents the syndicate which has the monopoly on hashish in the country. They want to buy all the charas but warn Worrals that she must not bring in any more or else they would have to take steps to stop her. Worrals counters that in such a serious matter she must discuss directly with the principals and not through a subordinate. This request is granted and Markoff takes them to meet the heads of the syndicate. They buy the charas readily but have no interest when Worrals offers to sell them a quantity of weapons and ammunition. Chapter 5: Markoff Comes Back Worrals and Frecks return to their hotel thinking they have barked up the wrong tree but later that afternoon, Markoff returns. He maintains a private sideline and, for a suitable price, can introduce them to a buyer of weapons. Worrals agrees to deal but balks at the fortnight it would take to get a reply from the prospective customer. She suggests that Markoff give her a letter of introduction and let her and Frecks make the long journey to meet this client themselves. She also wants to bring Maki, as an interpreter. Suitably bribed, Markoff agrees. Melinos is horrified at the risks they are taking but can't stop them. Chapter 6: Journey by Sea Markoff takes delivery of the charas for his syndicate and then drives Worrals, Frecks and Maki to Suez where they board a boat which sets sail for the Red Sea. The next day they see how it's done when their boat rendezvous with a steamer. Cases of ammunition are brought on board and then covered with raw hides. Chapter 7: Alarms and Complications An R.A.F. flying boat spots the boat and then a government patrol vessel rapidly overhauls it. Worrals tells the worried captain to leave the talking to her. Worrals tells the British naval officer that she and Frecks are on a pearling trip and they are taken on board the patrol craft. There they have a surprise. Melinos is waiting for them and he has bad news. Markoff has found out who they are! But Worrals insists on carrying on--they are too near the truth to give up. Later in the day, they spot another boat trying to overtake them. The captain thinks they are pirates but Maki thinks it's from Suez and belongs to Markoff. At all costs they must prevent the boat from catching up so Worrals tells the captain it is a pirate boat. She borrows a rifle from him and attempts to pick off the boat crew. Then by ordering the captain to go through a narrow channel between two islets, she manages to get the pursuing boat to run aground. Safe from pursuit, Worrals and Frecks finally go ashore near their destination. Chapter 8: Difficult Going The boat captain takes Worrals and Frecks to meet a Sheikh Abd-el-Katil. Worrals shows Markoff's letter of introduction. The sheikh takes them by caravan up the hills and inland until they reach a large Arab camp at an oasis. Chapter 9: Worrals Does a Deal Worrals and Frecks meet a man named Cosmo and they do a deal to supply him with a load of weapons and ammunition. Cosmo gives them a location 30 miles north of where they landed. The arms are to be delivered there. Cosmo takes his leave and Worrals and Frecks prepare to return to their boat. Maki takes them to a vantage point. They can see Markoff's boat next to theirs! They can't go back that way as Markoff's men would be on their way up. Worrals tells Maki to try to reach Melinos on his own and report. She and Frecks would follow Cosmo's caravan as he must be heading for his arms dump. Chapter 10: Into the Wilderness Worrals and Frecks steal two horses and a water skin and are almost about to depart when a messenger from Markoff's boat arrives to sound the alarm. The sheikh's men fire at them but our friends manage to ride off safely. After a day's journey, they camp for the night. Worrals can see an oasis nearby which is likely to be Cosmo's camp. Chapter 11: A Desparate Reconnaissance They reconnoitre the oasis by moonlight. Cosmo can be seen passing out weapons to some men from an underground cache. Worrals decides to steal some water from Cosmo's tent. While there, she overhears a conversation between Cosmo and the Sheikh who has now ridden to the camp to denounce Worrals and Frecks. Something big is being planned for "Monday", quite soon. There is no time to linger. Worrals grabs a jerry can of water and runs off. Back at their bivouac, they find that their horses have gone so they walk westwards, hoping to reach the sea. Chapter 12: Back to the Sea Our friends reach the sea where they are spotted by a Catalina flying boat. Worrals signals the position of Cosmo's arms dump. In reply, the aircraft drops a message streamer confirming the good news that Maki had reached them and promising help. But, distracted by the aircraft, they do not see the Sheikh approaching with a large force of horsemen. Worrals and Frecks are captured and brought back to the oasis. Chapter 13: Touch and Go Cosmo has Worrals and Frecks tied to palm trees. He is joined by the Sheikh and Markoff's chauffeur and they dispute what to do with the two girls. Markoff's chauffeur wants to kill them right away. The sheikh wants to buy them and sell them off as slaves to other sheikhs in the interior. Cosmo, however, is desperate to find out how much they know of his plans. He instructs a man to whip the girls to get them to talk but this is interrupted by the arrival of paratroops which causes pandemonium at the oasis. Cosmo and the Sheikh are shot as they try to escape. Worrals and Frecks are freed. Colin Pasha and Melinos arrive at the oasis and congratulate them. They confirm that Maki had reached them with a report. Aircraft had been sent out to look for them. After the Catalina, another aircraft had spotted horse tracks leading back to the oasis and so Colin had sent in the paratroops. The arms are captured and the authorities now know about a general uprising planned for Monday. The mission is a success but Frecks, of course, is more concerned about getting a good dinner. Category:Plot summaries